Sexual Harassment Laws in Canada—It's All a Question of Power

Shirish P. Chotalia

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DOI: 10.2190/QG47-RGEY-TH5Y-Q5CV

Abstract

This is a comparative analysis of the laws of sexual harassment between Canada and the United States. American courts have tended to display a reluctance in dealing with employer liability, while the sheer volume of complaints before American courts have forced them to directly confront issues of standards of proof not yet in issue in Canada (i.e., the "reasonable woman" test which address power imbalances by focusing on the complainant's perspective, etc.).

The article introduces the topic through acknowledging the increased public interest and awareness of sexual harassment, and then provides a brief historical over-view of the law in Canada and the United States. Topics focus on actionability, legal definition of sexual harassment, employer liability, co-worker harassment, administrative structure, and remedy. Differences between the countries are identified. These differences form the basis for what lessons the two countries can learn from each other. The conclusion focuses on how the courts of the two countries can continue to develop sexual harassment laws in a positive and meaningful way.

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.